Carnegie Mellon University
August 05, 2013

Press Release: Carnegie Mellon’s Allen L. Robinson Awarded Lane Professorship For Outstanding Research and Leadership

Contact: Chriss Swaney / 412-268-5776 / swaney@andrew.cmu.edu

Allen RobinsonPITTSBURGH—Carnegie Mellon University’s Allen L. Robinson has been named the Raymond J. Lane Distinguished Professor in Mechanical Engineering. Robinson, head of Carnegie Mellon's dynamic Department of Mechanical Engineering, received the prestigious professorship for his outstanding research contributions and his leadership in mechanical engineering. The appointment was effective Feb. 1, 2013.

"I am deeply honored by this recognition, and I plan to continue leading change and innovation throughout my department and the top-ranked College of Engineering," said Robinson, who is one of the founders of the Center for Atmospheric Particle Studies, a multidisciplinary center involving faculty and students from the College of Engineering and the Mellon College of Science.

University Provost and Executive Vice President Mark S. Kamlet praised Robinson for helping to raise the status and visibility of the university through his achievements.

"This professorship is awarded to individuals with entrepreneurial spark and leadership abilities so endemic to the problem-solving environment at CMU," said Ray Lane, a partner emeritus at Kleiner Perkins and chairman of Carnegie Mellon’s Board of Trustees. "Allen L. Robinson’s novel research has transformed how scientists, engineers and policymakers view fine particle emissions from cars, trucks, wildfires and other combustion processes."

The gift was made possible by Raymond J. and Stephanie H. Lane. The Lanes established the Raymond J. Lane Distinguished Professorship in Mechanical Engineering in 2000 in memory of Ray's father, who was a mechanical engineering alumnus at what was then Carnegie Tech.

"Allen is a hard-working, highly regarded and award-winning researcher who I am very pleased to see become the next Raymond J. Lane Distinguished Professor in Mechanical Engineering, a prestigious and well-deserved recognition of his high quality contributions to, and leadership within the air quality community," said James H. Garrett, Jr., the Thomas Lord Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and dean of the College of Engineering.

In addition to leading the development of a major new research thrust to quantify the climate and air quality impacts of unconventional gas development, Robinson's work also has led to improved policy assessments of air pollution and global climate.

From 2008 to 2010, Robinson served as a treasurer for the American Association for Aerosol Research, leading the development of an endowment policy for the organization. He currently serves on several professional boards, including the Health Effects Institute Research Committee, the Environmental Protection Agency Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC) Air Monitoring and Methods Subcommittee, the editorial advisory board of Aerosol Science and Technology and the editorial board of Progress in Energy and Combustion Science.

The winner of many academic awards, he received the CIT Outstanding Research Award in 2010, the Ahrens Career Development Chair in Mechanical Engineering in 2005 and the George Tallman Ladd Outstanding Young Faculty Award in 2000. In 2009, he was awarded a fellowship from the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Science at the University of Colorado, allowing him to spend a year studying air quality and climate at NOAA in Boulder.

Robinson holds a bachelor's degree in civil engineering from Stanford University, and a master's degree and Ph.D. in mechanical engineering from the University of California at Berkeley.

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Allen Robinson, pictured above, is head of CMU's Mechanical Engineering Department and one of the founders of the Center for Atmospheric Particle Studies. He is highly regarded for his contributions to, and leadership within the air quality community.